It's interesting to read this and think back to when I first started playing the guitar (1864) and playing in folk clubs (1965) in the north of England. My local club in Lancaster was the 'Lancaster Folk Stir', which had been running for a few years in various back and upstairs rooms in pubs. Its main organiser was a matronly lady called Mrs. Parkinson and one of the main helpers was a well-known GP, Frank Rickards. The organisers were mainly in their 50s, which reflected the club's origins as a folk dance society. The sorts of acts booked were the Spinners, Jackie & Bridie, etc., and we youngsters thought they were a bit old hat at the time.

So, in the mid-60s, lots of young, rebellious bloods like me turned up, infused with stuff from the likes of Bob Dylan and Davy Graham, playing - or ineptly trying to play - stuff that we thought was different and "modern" and cool. And, I suppose, trying to shock the older ones a bit. After all, what is youth for but to kick against the older generations and épater les bourgeuois? And, of course, we were tolerated with gently amused smiles, and welcomed back - and then shown how it should be done by the likes of local entertainer Sam Sherry with his years of experience on the stage...

So, for a solo beginner, clubs like that were a place to bud and grow and find your feet, and I'm grateful to them, though I didn't play much folk music in them and rarely sang any traditional songs! And it's what you could do if you didn't go the electric route (that came later) and form a band with your mates. I suppose the nearest modern equivalents are the open mics and the sessions, where I see many young players cutting their teeth just as I did 50 years ago. Sessions, in particular - at least, the ones I go to - I've found to be as informal and welcoming as the old club scene I remember in Lancaster. And that club has long gone. As Howard says, things move on.